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  • Economy

    SpaceX fever drives Korean investors to space-themed ETFs

    Korean investors are rushing to gain exposure to SpaceX ahead of its Nasdaq debut, pouring money into space-themed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as the Elon Musk-led company prepares for one of the largest initial public offerings (IPOs) in history, market watchers said Wednesday. The U.S. space giant is scheduled to begin trading on Nasdaq Friday (local time). SpaceX reportedly drew about $150 billion in investor demand during the book-building process, roughly double its fundraising target. If the offering proceeds as expected, it would be valued at about $1.75 trillion, potentially making it one of the 10 most valuable publicly traded companies in the United States. The anticipated listing has sparked strong interest among Korean investors across both institutional and retail channels. Mirae Asset Securities' second subscription offering for professional investors tied to the SpaceX IPO was fully subscribed in about two minutes on Monday morning, following a first round last Friday that closed in roughly one minute. The offering sought to raise a total of $500 million. Retail investors

    2 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    SpaceX fever drives Korean investors to space-themed ETFs
  • Others

    KOSPI rout pushes forced stock sales to highest level in nearly 3 years

    3 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    KOSPI rout pushes forced stock sales to highest level in nearly 3 years
  • Economy

    Chief regulator says efforts underway to ease network separation rules in response to AI security threats

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Chief regulator says efforts underway to ease network separation rules in response to AI security threats
  • Economy

    Gov't cash handouts estimated to have created $8.9 bil. in additional sales

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Gov't cash handouts estimated to have created $8.9 bil. in additional sales
  • Economy

    KRX issues sell-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp fall

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    KRX issues sell-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp fall
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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

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Economy

Money supply drops for 1st time in over 3 years in March

The Bank of Korea / YonhapKorea's money supply shrank for the first time in more than three years in March, as rising interest rates drove down the money flow into debt markets, central bank data showed Thursday.The country's M2, a key gauge of the money supply, stood at 3,658.5 trillion won ($2.85 trillion) on average in March, down 0.1 percent from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).This marked the first month-on-month decline in M2 since September 2018. M2 is a measure of the money supply that counts cash, demand deposits and other easily convertible financial instruments.The March decline was attributed to falls in money flows into trust and money market funds (MMFs) that mostly invest in the debt market.The bond market was rattled, as interest rates have been rising in line with the central bank's rate hikes aimed at reining in inflation. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. The money flow into trusts and MMFs shrank 10.5 trillion won and 8.9 trillion won, respectively, in March from a month earlier, the data showed. Ba

May 12, 2022
Money supply drops for 1st time in over 3 years in March
Economy

Net outflows of foreign money from stock markets continue in April

gettyimagesbankForeigners continued to pull out more money than they brought into Korea's stock markets for the third straight month in April as rising interest rates and uncertainty over the war in Ukraine weighed on investor sentiment, central bank data showed Thursday.Net foreign money outflows from the main KOSPI and secondary Kosdaq markets came to $3.78 billion in April, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).This was the third straight month that foreigners had pulled out more money than they parked in local equity markets.Korea's stock markets have been under downward pressure amid worries that the U.S. Federal Reserve will swiftly and aggressively raise its interest rate down the road to tame runaway inflation. Rate hikes tend to encourage investors to put their money in safer assets than stocks. Market woes have also been amplified by the grim outlook for the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has propelled oil and key commodity prices even higher and added to inflation woes. (Yonhap)

May 12, 2022
Net outflows of foreign money from stock markets continue in April
Economy

Nasdaq falls more than 3% as US inflation data gives little relief to investors

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), May 11. Reuters-Yonhap U.S. stocks ended sharply lower Wednesday, with the Nasdaq dropping more than 3 percent and the Dow falling for a fifth straight day after U.S. inflation data did little to ease investors' worries over the outlook for interest rates and the economy.The benchmark SP 500 lost 1.7 percent and is now down 18 percent from its Jan. 3 record closing high.The Labor Department's monthly consumer price index (CPI) report suggested inflation may have peaked in April but is likely to stay strong enough to keep the Federal Reserve's foot on the brakes to cool demand.The CPI increased 0.3 percent last month, the smallest gain since last August, while economists polled by Reuters had forecast consumer prices gaining 0.2 percent in April."It did not dispel the notion that there's more to go in terms of reining in inflation," said Quincy Krosby, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial in Charlot

May 12, 2022
Nasdaq falls more than 3% as US inflation data gives little relief to investors
Economy

Mirae Asset Global Investments tapped as preferred bidder for IFC Seoul

IFC Seoul on Yeouido / Courtesy of Mirae Asset Global Investments By Anna J. ParkMirae Asset Global Investments was tapped as the preferred bidder for the purchase of the International Finance Center (IFC) Seoul, located in the Yeouido financial district. According to local investment banking sources, Toronto-headquartered Brookfield Asset Management ― the current owner of IFC Seoul ― notified the asset management subsidiary of Mirae Asset Financial Group on Wednesday that it had been selected as the preferred bidder. The two companies are slated to carry out the remaining procedures to close the deal by the end of the third quarter this year.The purchase deal amounts to slightly over 4 trillion won ($3.2 billion). As Brookfield Asset acquired IFC Seoul in 2016 from its previous owner, AIG Seoul, for around 2.5 trillion won, the asset manager's six-year ownership is expected to fetch returns of over 1.5 trillion won in profits. When the deal is finalized and complet

May 11, 2022By Anna J. Park
Mirae Asset Global Investments tapped as preferred bidder for IFC Seoul
Economy

Luna's fall unnerves Korean crypto investors

Seen above is a price chart of Luna. Screenshot from CoinMarketCapBy Lee Min-hyungKorean crypto investors' fear sentiment is reaching its peak after Terra's flagship stablecoin UST started dropping its intended $1 peg on Monday, in what is seen by many as a “prelude” to the ongoing collapse of its sister token Luna.Luna was traded at around 12,000 won ($9.40) as of Wednesday at 3:20 p.m., according to Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit. This is a drop of around 50 percent from a day earlier. Up until last week, Luna was valued at more than 100,000 won. Luna has drawn global attention for the past year as one of the most influential cryptocurrencies here and abroad, with its market capitalization becoming the world's seventh-largest in March. Terra's anchor protocol ecosystem was behind Luna's rapid rise, as it has offered a high yield to investors.The recent de-pegging of UST, however, has tainted Luna's global fame. Many critics also raise issues over the credibility of UST as a stablecoin, further boosting Luna's sharp decline.Do Kwon, co-founder of Terraform

May 11, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Luna's fall unnerves Korean crypto investors
Economy

New government puts top priority on curbing inflation

President Yoon Suk-yeol, left, speaks during his first meeting with his top secretaries at the new presidential office in Yongsan District in central Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapFinance ministry to launch emergency economic task force By Yi Whan-wooCurbing inflation was the top priority at the first meeting of President Yoon Suk-yeol with his top secretaries, Wednesday, where he stressed that soaring prices are the most daunting challenge faced by the country's economy. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho also promised to prioritize the stabilization of consumer prices in managing macroeconomic risks.“Our economy faces an extremely challenging situation, with rising prices being the top challenge,” Yoon said at the meeting held at the new presidential office in Yongsan District in central Seoul. He added that a spike in energy prices and other signs of stagflation ― a toxic mixture of stagnant growth and rising inflation ― are “a red light for the competence of businesses” which he seeks to harness to achieve his market-driven e

May 11, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
New government puts top priority on curbing inflation
Economy

CREFIA chairman Kim Joo-hyun expected to lead top financial regulator

Credit Finance Association (CREFIA) Chairman Kim Joo-hyun, left, and Shin & Kim's senior advisor Hwang Young-key / Courtesy of CREFIA and Shin & KimBy Anna J. ParkKim Joo-hyun, the incumbent chairman of the Credit Finance Association of Korea (CREFIA), is forecast to be appointed as lead of the country's top financial regulator for the next three years. According to industry sources and local media reports, the presidential office is could announce the appointee for the Financial Services Commission (FSC) chair position as early as this week.The appointment comes as the former FSC chairman Koh Seung-beom resigned from the post earlier this month, prior to the beginning of the new Yoon Suk-yeol administration. Koh took office in August last year.Kim has been serving as the chairman of CREFIA since June 2019, and his three-year term is slated to be completed by June of this year. Graduating from Seoul National University and earning an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, U.S., Kim has built a decades-long career in the public financial sector. Since passing t

May 11, 2022By Anna J. Park
CREFIA chairman Kim Joo-hyun expected to lead top financial regulator
Economy

New finance minister vows efforts to stabilize inflation

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho / YonhapFinance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said Wednesday the new government will place a policy priority on stabilizing inflation and beefing up risk management amid heightened economic uncertainty.The finance ministry has launched an emergency economic response task force in a bid to better monitor macroeconomic conditions and the financial markets."Global economic uncertainty has heightened, led by the Ukraine crisis and major economies' monetary tightening, and ordinary people are facing difficulties amid rising inflation," Choo said at his inauguration ceremony in Sejong, an administrative hub 130 km southeast of Seoul.Korea's consumer prices grew at the fastest clip in more than 13 years in April due to surging fuel prices and a rebound in demand from the pandemic. Inflation spiked 4.8 percent year-on-year in April, accelerating from a 4.1 percent gain in March.Concerns about stagflation, a mix of slumping economic growth and high inflation, have arisen as runaway inflation is feared to erode private spending, hurting economic growth.Choo also said th

May 11, 2022
New finance minister vows efforts to stabilize inflation
Economy

Banks' household loans grow in April for 1st time in 5 months

gettyimagesbank Household loans extended by banks here grew for the first time in five months in April despite the government's curbs on lending, and rising borrowing costs, central bank data showed Wednesday.Banks' outstanding household loans came to 1,060.2 trillion won ($829.8 billion) as of the end of April, up 1.2 trillion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).This marked the first month-on-month increase since December, and can also be compared with a 1 trillion won decline tallied in March.The April rise came despite the government's curbs on lending amid worries over runaway household debt, and rising borrowing costs from the central bank's move to raise its policy rate to tame rising inflationary pressure.Last month, the BOK raised its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 1.5 percent, the fourth rate increase since August last year. It has hinted at further increases in the months to come.Observers exp

May 11, 2022
Banks' household loans grow in April for 1st time in 5 months
Economy

Job growth extended for 14th month in April amid economic recovery

gettyimagesbank Korea reported job additions for the 14th consecutive month in April as the country's economic recovery momentum continued despite heightened global uncertainty, data showed Wednesday.The number of employed people came to 28.08 million, up 865,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.The April reading was higher than a year-on-year increase of 831,000 in March and also marked the most job additions for any April since 2000.The country's jobless rate fell 1 percentage point to 3 percent.The Korean economy has been on a recovery track on the back of robust exports. But it also faces heightened economic uncertainty due to soaring energy prices caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary tightening. (Yonhap)

May 11, 2022
Job growth extended for 14th month in April amid economic recovery
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